


as are you

by shima_wishes



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Angst, F/M, Fluff, I promise, Marichat, adrienette - Freeform, i swear to god it has a happy ending, post-reveal
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-13
Updated: 2016-08-15
Packaged: 2018-08-08 12:35:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,701
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7758091
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shima_wishes/pseuds/shima_wishes
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“You know, it hurt when I realised that you’re not in love with me. But nothing can compare to the pain I felt when I saw you fall in love with her.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> warning: ANGST (and a very short chapter)

“You know, it hurt when I realised that you’re not in love with me. But nothing can compare to the pain I felt when I saw you fall in love with her.”

“Mari, I…” Adrien reached out to grasp one of her shoulders, but she flinched away and his arm faltered, dropping limply to his side.

“We’re the same person, but we’re also not. You fell in love with Ladybug. She’s confident and outgoing and flirty, and…” Marinette wrapped her arms around herself, and Adrien thought he caught her shivering, even though the empty school classroom was warm. “And then there’s me. Quiet, clumsy, stuttery Marinette, swept out of your vision by none other than my own alternate persona. And it hurts so much. It kills me.”

“I didn’t mean…”

“And all this time as Chat, you’ve been telling me how stupid any boy would be not to fall in love with me, even outside the suit!” She laughed, and it was cold, harsh, but there was also a tremor to it that almost cracked the illusion of emotionless. “You gave me confidence, and then you took it away again. If feels like some kind of cruel game.”

“I’m sorry, Marinette,” he said through the lump in his throat. He wished he could cry, but the tears refused to flow. “I didn’t mean it. I never could have imagined-”

“What, that I was Ladybug?” she shook her head, cheeks shining with tears. Even like this, it was so obvious now; Adrien wanted to kick himself for not realising who she was sooner. “No, nobody does. It’s not your fault.”

“What I told you as Chat Noir was the truth. I’m stupid. I’ve been stupid. All this time, I should have known…”

“But you didn’t. It’s too late,” Marinette sniffed, smiling sadly at her partner. “I love you, Adrien. Both as Chat and as you. I always thought that everything would work out somehow, but now everything’s come crashing down.”

All too late, Adrien realised that he was in love with the girl standing in front of him, too. Sweet Marinette who liked him because of him, not because of his name, or his money, or his looks. Kind Marinette who lost her temper sometimes but always managed to come up with a fair solution. Clumsy Marinette, who tripped and fell constantly but always got up smiling. Ladybug had been shrouding his vision before. And all too late, he could see the similarities between them; how much he cared; how much love he had for the girl standing before him.

But it was too late. Just like she said.

“Please leave me alone. I need some time alone,” she whispered.

Adrien hesitated. He didn’t want to leave her like this - she seemed so alone and vulnerable. That wasn’t the truth though, and he knew it. This was Marinette. This was Ladybug. Brave and strong and independent. If she said she wanted to be left alone, then he would leave her alone.

He couldn’t bear looking at her any longer so he turned and made his way towards the doorway, pausing there with one hand on the frame. When he spoke, his voice seemed to come out soft and weak, almost as if he were a helpless kitten. “I love you, you know. More than anything.”

She broke down into sobs behind him, and he ran. He ran and ran until he reached the limousine waiting for him outside and curled into the back seat, pressing his head into his knees.

And finally, the tears came.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> does it get happier? does it not? well if you read the last chapter's end note then you'll know but it sounds better to leave it in suspense

When she thought she had finally cried herself out for the day, Marinette eventually drifted home. She avoided her mother and father by entering in through the back door; she knew they would make a fuss if they saw her in this state, and right now sympathy was the last thing she wanted. Not because she didn’t appreciate it, but because she was afraid she would collapse into tears all over again.

So instead she just yelled a word of greeting and slipped into bed. Tikki zipped out of her hiding place and gazed sorrowfully at her companion with big blue eyes before settling onto Marinette’s head, softly stroking her hair in a small gesture of comfort. To that, and the gentle lulling sounds of the world outside her window, Marinette fell asleep.

When she awoke, it was to the buzz of her phone in her jeans pocket. She glanced at the window. It was dark out. Just how long had she slept for? Realising the phone hadn’t stopped buzzing, she pulled it out and winced under its glare, bleary-eyed in the darkness. She was being called by an unknown number. Yawning indifferently, she hung up.

As she did so, she noticed that she had six new messages: one was from Alya, and five were from the mystery caller. She frowned and clicked on Alya’s name.

**Alya <3**  
_Girl, Adrien just asked me for your number! Good luck, tell me what he says!!_

A horrified expression overtook Marinette’s face as she stared at the screen, mouth open wide. Oh no. No, no, no. For once in her life, she had seen enough of Adrien today.

She closed Alya’s chat and stared anxiously at Adrien’s number, biting the fingernails of her free hand. Did she want to see what he had to say? Suddenly, she couldn’t believe the things she had said to him back at the school, even though they were truly what she felt. He was her partner and most trusted friend; and whilst she was in pain, she realised that he probably was too.

Feeling sick with guilt, she braced herself and clicked.

_Marinette, it’s Adrien. I’m so, so sorry about everything I’ve done. I’ve been so stupid. Please let me explain it to you._

_Please… I need to set things right. Or at least as right as I can get them._

_And not over text. Not even over call would be better, but I can understand if you’d rather not meet me in person again._

_Marinette…_

_I’m calling you._

Marinette bit her lip. Hot tears prickled at the corners of her eyes, and she angrily wiped them away. Why did he have to be so nice to her? It wasn’t fair. Everything about this was so unfair.

She switched off her phone.

She knew that getting up and doing something would be the best way to take her mind off things, but she didn’t have the energy, so instead she just sat on her bed and hugged her pillow, burying her face into it. Tikki was still fast asleep.

After a while, Marinette heard an unusual noise. It was a tap, tap, tap above her head, as if a branch had gotten caught on her balcony and was skittering about in the wind. She dismissed it as that and ignored it until it grew to something not dissimilar to a knock.

“Marinette? Please let me in. We need to talk.”

Marinette looked up to the trapdoor, startled. For a few seconds she was speechless. But then, “Go away. I don’t want to talk to you.”

“Please…” Chat Noir’s voice was pained. “Just… only a few minutes. I want to explain.”

He sounded as if he was being genuine. Marinette sat still for a few minutes and then sighed, begrudgingly getting up and opening the trap door for him.

Once he had slipped inside, his emerald cat eyes blinked at her in the darkness. She remained stationary on the bed, picking at her duvet, looking anywhere to avoid returning his gaze. Even so, she was the first to speak up. “Alright. I’ll listen this time. Tell me what you want to say.”

“I wanted to say that what I said earlier was true. I really am tremendously stupid. Incredibly idiotic. For everything that I’ve done, but… also for being so blind to myself,” he told her, trying his best not to stumble over his own words; he was trembling.

“Alright,” was Marinette’s quiet, miserable response.

“I was so blind that I didn’t understand until earlier that I’ve been in love with you the whole time, Marinette. Not just Ladybug. But also you. You… as a whole… you mean everything to me.”

“How do you expect me to believe you now? How do I know that you’re not making this up?” sniffed Marinette. The tears were on their way again, but this time she was holding them back.

“Because everything I tell you is the truth,” he stated simply.

“Are- are you being serious?”

“You’re the person I trust most in the entire world, Marinette. I wouldn’t lie to you,” as he spoke there was a tremor in his voice, and suddenly Marinette knew that he wasn’t lying. “It took me too long to realise it. Way too long. I’ll admit that it’s because my feelings for Ladybug refused to let me believe that I had feelings for you, too, so I just subconsciously suppressed them. They got lost, but they were always there. I swear that I love you, Marinette. With or without the mask.”

Tears began streaming down Marinette’s face, and she covered it with her hands, shoulders shuddering as she sobbed.

“M-Marinette! Please don’t cry!” he stared at her in distress and moved to sit closer to her on the bed, reaching out to put a hand on her shoulder again, and this time she didn’t flinch away. “I’m sorry! I’m so, so sorry… I shouldn’t have come…”

“I’m sorry too,” Marinette’s small voice came quietly to him as her sobbing slowed. “I’m so sorry for everything I said to you earlier. I-I’m glad you came. Thank you, Chaton. Adrien. Th-thank you so much…”

Chat pulled Marinette into his arms and she wept into his shoulder. He rested his head atop hers, his heartbeat racing when she fell asleep against him a while later. Looking down at her, he smiled, carefully stroking a strand of hair from her face.

“You’re perfect,” he whispered aloud, without really meaning to.

A tiny smile tugged at the edge of Marinette’s lips, and Chat’s face seared as he realised that she was still awake.  
  
“As are you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for reading! i hope you enjoyed this ending~  
> find me on tumblr: [here](http://l-adrien.tumblr.com)  
> also sorry if you can see a second end notes exactly the same as the first, for some reason i can't delete it so there it is

**Author's Note:**

> i’m sorry. (i’m not sorry ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) )  
> okay but i kind of was sorry so i rectified it in a part 2 which is on the way  
> prompt list: [here](http://lotsofimagines.tumblr.com/post/134133149486/writing-prompts)


End file.
